Fire and Ashes
by Glissoning Raven
Summary: As Corus burns, the Chamber watches and wonders what went wrong. Tortall's silent guardian is forced to watch as Tortall crumbles and everything it tried so hard to prevent comes to pass. It searches for a way to right the wrongs of the past and make Tortall whole again, but the answers it finds in the darkness are not the ones it was hoping for. Sequel to 'Falling Angels'.


**Dedicated to all the lovely reviewers of Falling Angels; Huntress248, LadyKnightAllayia, Secretshinobi, missgrant, Guest, and ziva10.**

**Song: What I've Done**

**Artist: Linkin Park**

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The heat of the flames burned hotter than the summer sun, lapping at the iron doors like a starving dog. Screams of terror and torment echoed through the burning halls, the last sacred cries of a dying kingdom. Metallic monsters swarmed over the walls, crushing, ripping, and tearing everything in their path. Fire rained down from the sky, scorching the once lush green lawns and turning everything it touched to ash. The cries of humans and animals alike rang out in the night.

In the midst of the chaos, the Chamber stood, as cold and unforgiving as ever. It could only watch as the country it had protected for so long shattered into a thousand tiny pieces. But beneath its cold exterior, beneath the chilled stone and heavy iron doors, it cried tears of grief and rage. The being trapped within was powerless. One thought ran through its mind; why?

**In this farewell  
There's no blood  
There's no alibi  
'Cause I've drawn regret  
From the truth  
Of a thousand lies  
**

There were only twenty Tortallian defenders left.

How had things gone so wrong? The Chamber had seen the shape of things to come and chosen a champion to fight to save Tortall from this gruesome fate. It had chosen Keladry of Mindelan. It had given her a task; kill Blayce. It had shown her the consequences of failure. She had succeeded, but it hadn't made any difference.

Why? Keladry's victory was supposed to ensure the future of Tortall. So why was Corus burning beneath the might of the Scanran army? Tortall should have been victorious. The death of Blayce should have turned the tide in their favor and crippled the Scanran army. Instead it seemed to make them stronger.

The Chamber had looked into the future and seen the path of Tortall's future split into two. One had ended in victory and one had ended in fire and destruction. The Chamber had done everything to ensure that Tortall followed the path to victory. It should have worked, but it didn't. He had failed the world. He had failed Tortall. He had failed Keladry.

**So let mercy come  
And wash away  
What I've done  
**

**I'll face myself  
To cross out what I've become  
Erase myself  
And let go of what I've done  
**

There were only fifteen Tortallian defenders left.

As the Chamber mourned in bitter silence, something stirred in the darkness. Another presence joined him in watching what was once the greatest city in the world burn. It was an unwelcome presence, one he knew all too well. For awhile neither being said a word as they watched, but the Chamber could feel the satisfaction of the other being. It was that being that eventually broke the heavy silence.

"Isn't it beautiful, brother?" the being asked.

"I see no beauty in the slaughter of the people I have fought to protect for so long," the Chamber replied bitterly.

The other being laughed. His laugh was long and dark. It sent chills through the Chamber, though he would never admit it.

"Fight? You have never fought, brother," the other being sneered. "You have always sat back and let others do all the fighting for you. You sit here spouting your prophecies and meddling in affairs of which you have no comprehension. You are nothing but a weak, pathetic, fool."

**Put to rest  
What you thought of me  
While I clean this slate  
With the hands of uncertainty  
**

There were ten Tortallian defenders left.

"We are not meant to directly interfere," the Chamber replied stiffly. "We are meant to guide mankind with minimal interference."

"And see where that approach has gotten you," the other being sneered. "Your army is almost gone. They will not last for more than an hour. Your fortresses have fallen. Your capital will fall. Your country is in ruin. Yet you still hold on to your pitiful belief that your path was the right one."

"I know I did the right thing," the Chamber replied. "If I had a chance to do it over…"

He paused. If he had a chance to do it over, would he do the same thing? Would he choose the same path? Yes, he decided. This path was the right one, at least it was supposed to be.

"I would choose the same path," he said resolutely.

But, would he really, knowing what it would cost them, knowing how it would all end? But it isn't over yet, a small voice whispered in the back of his mind. There is still a sliver of hope, no matter how small.

**So let mercy come  
And wash away  
What I've done  
**

There were five Tortallian defenders left.

The other being seemed to sense the Chambers uncertainty.

"This is all your fault," he whispered. "If you would have told the Tortallians the surrender rather than to fight back none of this would have happened. You could have prevented all of this."

"Maggur would have slaughtered them anyway," the Chamber snapped. "Besides, they never would have surrendered even if I had told them to."

"You make it sound like you couldn't make them do it anyway," the other being laughed. "Brother, have you grown so weak that manipulating mere mortals is beyond you?"

"I am not like you," the Chamber said. "I do not use force to get my way."

**I'll face myself  
To cross out what I've become  
Erase myself  
And let go of what I've done**

There were four Tortallian defenders left.

"Look at you," the other being sneered. "You have lived among mortals and served them for so long that you have forgotten who and what you are."

"Perhaps," that Chamber mused. "Or perhaps I have let them show me a better way. It is true that I have come to view things in a different light since coming to live here, but I believe this change is for the better."

"We are gods, brother," the other being said. "We are not meant to abide by the ways of mortals."

"That is what we have always believed," the Chamber replied. "But that belief has lead to countless wars and the destruction of entire nations. I believe that if there is any hope of preserving this world we must learn to change."

The other being laughed.

"If the humans are not willing to bend to our will then they do not deserve to live. You have become too attached to them. You are not looking at the bigger picture. Kingdoms rise and fall. Such is the way of things."

"Perhaps," replied the Chamber. "But I have seen the future and this was not supposed to fall, not yet. I have to wonder what, or who could alter that future so radically as to destroy an entire kingdom."

**For what I've done  
I start again  
And whatever pain may come  
Today this ends  
I'm forgiving what I've done  
**

There were three Tortallian defenders left.

Silence stretched between the two mighty beings for a moment before the other being spoke again.

"You could stop this," he said. "You could step in and end this right here. You could save your precious King."

"I can't," the Chamber said. "It was not meant to be. A new path has been set. I must let this play out."

"So you would let these people you have become so attached to die before your very eyes?" asked the other being.

"I am not like you," the Chamber hissed. "I do not meddle with Fate."

The other being smirked.

"You are more of a coward than I thought. As you wish. Sit back and watch then, watch as your precious Tortall burns."

**I'll face myself  
To cross out what I've become  
Erase myself  
And let go of what I've done**

There were two Tortallian defenders left.

"Why?" the Chamber asked aloud.

"Would you believe me if I told you it was because Tortall had become too powerful?"

"No. You do not listen to reason, only to greed and your own lust for blood."

The other being laughed.

"I cannot rightly deny that, brother," he admitted. "My actions here have ensured strife for another seven generations at least."

The Chamber was silent for a bit. He had to be careful what he said for fear that he would give away the last hope Tortall had.

"How did you do it?" the Chamber asked finally.

"I made a deal with our brother, the Dark God, to release Blayce from his grip for me. He may be just a man, but he is the finest pawn I have ever had."

Suddenly everything began to click into place in the Chamber's mind. He was finally beginning to understand how things had gone so wrong.

"What price did you pay for such a favor?" the Chamber asked in disgust.

"A price that hardly mattered," the other being said, brushing it off.

The Chamber looked out over what was left of Chorus. How could he have missed such a possibility? How could he not have planned for such an eventuality? This was his fault, his failure.

Shaking himself out of his reverie, he realized that all was not lost. Tortall still had one piece left in this game. If a war is what his brother wanted, then war is what he would get.

"You have not won yet, Baldr," the Chamber said. "The people will not take the slaughter of their king so lightly."

Baldr smirked.

"I do not fear the common peasants."

The Chamber said nothing.

**What I've done  
Forgiving what I've done**

There was only one Tortallian defender left.

The courtyard went silent as the King fell.

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**A/N: Baldr is the name of a god borrowed from old norse mythology. I claim the rights to his character but not to his name. **

** I know that the Chamber may come across as more than a little cold and uncaring sometimes, but he is a god. He may care more than other gods and feel some emotion, but he stills does not experience emotions the same way humans do.**

** A FULL STORY IS COMING! Unfortunately I will not be posting it until I have several good chapters written. It may be summer before I get it posted. I will try to hold you over with oneshots pertaining to the story until then.**


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